Thursday, May 31, 2012

Card Workshop with Stella

I just love love love the Stella papers!  Join me on Saturday morning, June 2 for a fabulous card workshop featuring the Stella paper pack. We'll make the cards shown below as well as a BONUS gift card/matchbook/teabag project!

Registration is limited to 8 participants, so hurry and grab the last seats. 



Everything is supplied, just bring your favorite adhesive, a bone folder, a small pair of scissors and your favorite beverage! 

Email me for details at inspired.scrapbooks@yahoo.com

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

What's a STAMPAGANZA???

Close to My Heart has a fabulous promotion coming up in June!  For the entire month, when you purchase any 2 stamp sets, YOU GET ONE FREE!!! 


How does this work?  Well, you choose the sets you want, and the lowest priced set will automatically be FREE to you!  Sure can't beat that!  Want more than one free set?  You can order as many as you want and get ONE free set for EVERY TWO sets you order!!   

Let's do the math:  You buy two C-sized sets at $13.95 each, and get a C-sized set ($13.95 value) for FREE.  That's 33% SAVINGS!  More fun than clipping coupons!!

Now is the time to get those sets you've had your eye on!  Tell your friends, too, so they aren't mad that they've missed out!  (Angry friends are no fun to scrap with)

Even better - book a Home Gathering with me for anytime between now and June 18 for a FREE set of stamps that are not available to regular customers!  "Wonderful You" has 36 different stamps, and you're sure to love it!  PLUS, you'll get at least $25 in Hostess Rewards for every Gathering that reaches $150 in sales! 

I'll be submitting an order during the first week of June, so call me and place your order TODAY.  I'll combine orders so you get our bulk shipping rate on your order!  You can either pick up your order when it arrives, or I can drop it off to you if you're local.

Friday, May 25, 2012

Get it while it lasts!

May is National Scrapbooking Month, and Close to My Heart has a special deal for you through the end of this month only.  When you order $35 or more in products from the current Spring/Summer Idea Book you can get a Dotty For You paper pack for only $5!

I've been playing with this pack, and I really love it.  The colors are cheerful and summery, so the layouts are bright and fun.  There is a print on one side which coordinates with the dots on the reverse.  Did I say 24 B&T duos papers for just $5? 

If you order from my online site at http://www.deequarles.ctmh.com/ you can save a few dollars in shipping by choosing the SmartPost option.  And, don't forget to check out the "While Supplies Last" here http://deequarles.ctmh.com/Retail/Products.aspx?CatalogID=1702  for some great deals on paper, embellishments and more.

Want to check out Dotty For You in action? 
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Saturday, May 19, 2012

Summer Workshops!

Want to have some fun and get some scrapbooking done this summer?  Let me help.  Each month, I'll offer a layout featuring one of Close to My Heart's fabulous paper packs!  You'll get all the paper to complete your layout, the embellishments for your layout and the use of any stamping supplies needed for the workshop - all for JUST $10. 

Workshops will be announced on my Meetup group at www.meetup.com/Cary-Papercrafters.  If a particular workshop time doesn't fit into your schedule, no worries!  Let me know and I'll try to schedule something that will work for you. 

June Workshop
Footloose Beach themed Layout

July Workshop
Superhero Patriotic themed Layout

August Workshop
Lucy Soft Floral layout

Learn some new techniques, try our fabulous products and have some fun with friends! 

Monday, May 14, 2012

Aspect ratio? What's that?? (and a COUPON!)

I love a good deal! Snapfish is at it again, offering 100 prints for just $10 bucks, including shipping right to your door.  Coupon code is MOMPRINTS through May 22.  Woo Hoo!

Ever get your prints back from a printer and discover that part of your image is missing??  Their heads are cropped off, or their arms are cut off at the sides?  Last time I used Snapfish, I had my digital photos printed at 4" by 5.3" size, this option was offered as I was checking out.  I was THRILLED!! 


The standard 4x6 print size requires that a digital camera image be cropped at the top and bottom (for a horizontal image) or that a white margin is left on either side. That's due to the aspect ratio of the digital image being different than the ratio of the printed photo.  They don't match up, so something has to be adjusted to fit.  There's more info here:  http://www.hp.com/united-states/consumer/digital_photography/print_better_photos/tips/cropping-digital-photos.html

Of course, some cameras have a selector for which aspect ratio you want for your photos.  If you choose an aspect ratio of 2:3, you can avoid this problem and just have your photos printed at 4x6 without issue. 

If you can't select the aspect ratio on your camera, then you either have to crop the image yourself using your own software or the photo processing site's software, then make sure you choose to "manually" adjust your margins, or you have to remember to leave enough space around your subject when you shoot the photo to not have their body parts cropped off in the developing process.  It's very frustrating to get back 300 photos from WDW with princesses missing their crowns!!  (Yes, that really happened.)

The 4 by 5.3 digital print option is a real timesaver.  I just shoot the photos, then upload them and have them printed.  No adjustment necessary.  If they look good in my viewfinder, they'll look good when they're printed, with minimal cropping needed when they go on a layout.  LOVE IT.

Faster, Simpler, Easier.

Saturday, May 12, 2012

Wait for it......

Big News!  Take a peek.....


I'm makin' my list, and checkin' it twice.....

Friday, May 4, 2012

Have You Seen Florentine?



I love pretty paper.  Well, obviously!  Anyway, I really like this bitty floral paper in the Florentine paper pack (X7153B).  I loved that it brought out the golden tones of the cardboard box in this photo!  This impromtu picture was taken when we went to visit my daughter at her new house.  Her goofy dog crawled into a cardboard box, then the kids crawled into the box with her!  You can see my daughter's sneakers on the corners of the box - she was the one taking the photo.  It's a funny picture, but I love it!

I decided to use the bitty floral Florentine paper it as a mat for the photo, and used my Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge to cut an 11" scalloped circle.  I used 1/4 of the scalloped circle in the corner of a sheet of Twilight cardstock, inked the edges of everything with Cocoa and threw on some lace and buttons from the Bohemian Assortment (Z1687).  I think I added some vintage buttons as well.  I cut the journal tag by hand, then stamped it with Goldenrod Exclusive Ink, using a background stamp from the Florentine WOTG stamp set.  The sentiment/title is from the same set.

This whole layout came about because I wanted to try the flowers from the Pemberley WOTG layout.  These are cut from a sheet of Creme Brulee paper, various sizes from 1 3/4 to 1" using the Art Philosphy cartridge (what else have I used in the past few months??)  After cutting, I used Goldrush Exclusive Ink to stamp a the large flower from the Pemberley WOTG kit directly in the center.  I love to mix and match between the sets, and using the colors from the packet helps everything coordinate beautifully!



I inked the edges of the flowers with Cocoa ink, then added dimension to them by pressing the rounded bottom end of a sharpie marker tube - with the marker closed! - into the center of the flower.  I put a piece of rubber foam from my mousepad (remember those?) underneath the flowers for a cushion while I did this.

The leaves are stamped with Olive ink and are from the Just for You stamp set (B1398).  Mix and match!!

Glue the flower parts together with Liquid Glass, and place on your layout.  I used Liquid Glass as the adhesive for all of the bulky items like lace and buttons on this page as well.  It's become my go-to adhesive, especially since the tip of the bottle is so small, it allows me to be very precise when applying adhesive to small areas.  Love it!!

Thursday, May 3, 2012

It's Almost Mother's Day!

Is there something special that you'd like for Mother's Day this year?  Is there someone who always asks you what you'd like, and you have a hard time coming up with ideas?  Or, maybe there's someone that you  always purchase a gift for who likes to scrapbook, but you have no idea what they might need?

Let me make your life a little easier!  Look through the Spring/Summer catalog and make a list of items you'd love to have.  Send me your list, and I will help your gift-giver select items from your list that fit your needs and their budget!  You'll get just what you've always wanted, and they get to breathe a little easier knowing that it's something you'll love. 

Send me your list at inspired.scrapbooks@yahoo.com and ask your gift-giver to contact me.  I'll make it easy for them to choose products that you'll love.  They can order the products online, and have them shipped directly to their door.  They can even get the Stamp of the Month and the Dotty paper pack if their purchase amount qualifies.   

Happy Mother's Day!  Faster, Simpler, Easier!!

Tuesday, May 1, 2012

May Special - Cricut Art Philosphy BONUS for you!

I just LOVE the Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge!  It's become my absolute favorite cartridge, and it's the one that I go to whenever I need something to spice up a layout or a card.  It has so many DIFFERENT shapes - and I love them all!!  Need flowers?  Got it.  Need a shaped card?  Got it.  Scalloped circles?  Yup!   How about BOXES, BAGS and TAGS?  Got those, too!

I wish I could show you everything on this cartridge - it's so VERSATILE!  I really think everyone with a Cricut should have this cartridge in their collection.  If you haven't gotten yours yet, I'm going to sweeten the pot a bit.  For the marvelous month of May, if you order the Cricut Art Philosophy bundle from my consultant site, at a gathering or workshop by me or from me by email or phone, you'll get any B-size My Acrylix stamp set for FREE.

The Art Philosophy cartridge bundle includes 3 exclusive D size stamp sets, designed to perfectly coordinate with the images on the cartridge.  You also get 3 sheets of Dimensional Elements (tags, shapes and banners) which coordinate with the shapes on the cartridge as well.  You can mix and match to your heart's content!  Just cut out your Cricut shape, stamp it, or cover a Dimensional Element shape with a cut shape, or just stamp directly onto the Dimesional Element - you get to choose!  You can create unique and beautiful artwork with incredible ease!


Which stamp set will you choose?*  There are many sets that coordinate with the Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge, and you will get to select one for FREE!!  Look through the catalog and when you see a stamp that has a red border around it, that stamp has a matching Cricut shape on the Art Philosophy cartridge!  What could be easier?!  Just cut the design on your Cricut, then stamp the pre-cut shape!  It takes creating to a new level of faster, simpler and easier!

Click the link below for more info, or if you'd like to place your order to have it shipped DIRECTLY TO YOUR DOOR! 
http://deequarles.ctmh.com/CTMH/Content.aspx?id=%2fen%2fsitecore%2fcontent%2fOBA%2fProducts%2fCricut_Art.aspx

Don't forget - if you order the Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge, you also qualify for BOTH the "Dotty for You" and the Stamp of the Month Specials!  Why not take advantage of that today?
*If you order online, I will send your Free B-size stamp set to you separately.  Let me know which one you'd like!